The Night Shift - Chapter Seven

Chester

There are many things to love in this life, Chester mused to himself.  But nothing quite as amazing as a Hawaiian pizza topped with parmesan and aioli. Pizza that good is the stuff of legends.

"That'll be five dollars sir," The Indian cashier mumbled wearily. Chester figured that the poor guy was just counting down the minutes in the last hour of his shift.

Chester nodded and offered the man a grin in response as he fished in his pocket for his wallet. The man stared blankly at him in response before calling back to one of his co-workers in Hindi. The co-worker laughed, closing a pizza box lid down upon a freshly made pizza. Chester retrieved his wallet, pulling out his Eftpos card and swiping it through the card machine.

As he carried out his transaction Chester watched the man working in the back as he gathered a group of pizzas up into a takeaway bag and went to answer a knock on the back door. He opened it to a young man with a grotesquely thick neck beard and a pizza hut cap and jacket. The young man sauntered inside, slinging the takeaway bag on with one smooth movement before turning to head back out.

"Laters curry munchers!" The delivery man called over his shoulder. The guy working out the back flipped him off, glaring as the man reached for the door.

"Alright sir, you want your receipt?" The cashier asked Chester, extending the slip of paper in his direction.

"Nah I'm good thanks," Chester said, shaking his head. He went to put his Eftpos card back inside his wallet but fumbled and dropped it on the floor. He grimaced awkwardly at the cashier, who raised his eyebrows and walked back into the kitchen area to join his co-workers.

Chester got on his knees, and grabbed his card off the dirty floor, he rubbed the dust that had already settled upon the card. The floor really was filthy down here, he supposed that they weren't in any rush to clean it at this time of night. He adjusted his dark blazer and made to get up when a loud knock at the back of the restaurant made him freeze where he was.

"Yo Indians!" Open the fucking door," The delivery man screamed. "Fucking help me!"

Silence filled the Pizza Hut before Chester heard some frantic steps and the pushing of the metal bar that allowed the door to open. Several thumps indicated a lot of heavy objects hitting the floor of the kitchen, yet no sooner had the thumps sounded were they replaced with screaming and howling. After a few seconds the delivery man's screams had turned to silence and all that could be heard was the screams of his Indian co-workers rising above the increasing sound of snarling.

Suddenly the cashier vaulted over the counter, nearly kicking Chester in the head. The Indian man was frantic, not even noticing Chester and carrying past through the door outside. He turned right and the night was penetrated with his continued screaming. Chester thought it might be time to follow the Indian man's course of action.

The counter suddenly shuddered, something landing heavily against it. Chester quietly leaned against the back of the counter so that he couldn't be seen from the other side. A gurgling noise came from somewhere above his head, it sounded like a person was choking. Another noise was prominent as well, that of someone ripping and slashing apart meat. Something warm and wet touched Chester' head, mixing into his wispy blond hair. He reached up and felt for this unknown substance and when he brought his hands away he gagged. It was blood, freshly spilled blood.

Chester wasn't sure what to do here, he could run but he didn't know if he'd get grabbed the minute he stood up. He would have to take a look, scout the kitchen out and then decide what to do. Slowly he pushed himself up along the counter, and steeled himself for a quick glance. He laid one hand over the pizza box he'd left upon the counter and turned to look at the carnage beyond.

In the far corner by the now open rear door lay the body of the delivery man, a pile of what looked like decaying humans on top of him. They were moving about and fighting one another to each get a scrap of meat off the man's body. Chester turned his head and his breath caught; getting his throat ripped out by another creature was the Indian kitchen worker. He was the one who had been making the gurgling noise as blood had welled up in his throat and mouth when he was first attacked. The creature seemed occupied with his meal and oblivious to his surroundings. Maybe I can just sneak out of here, Chester thought to himself.

Carefully and smoothly, Chester slid his pizza box off the counter and onto the floor beside him. Then, being sure to move slowly and silently he approached the door and eased it open. The cold night air hit his face, it felt soothing and cool. Shapes shuffled about in the dark but Chester figured if he kept moving undetected he could find somewhere safe in time.

Bleep! Bleep!

No...

Bleep! Bleep!

Chester hurriedly fished his cellphone out of his pocket and turned it off, but it was too late. The damage had been done. The tearing noises stopped. A low growl sounded. Then there were the sounds of scrabbling and clattering and Chester didn’t look back. He ran straight out the door, out of the Pizza Hut and onto the street outside. But a number of creatures around the store had heard the noise of the cellphone and were turning to box him off as well. From every direction creatures were surrounding Chester who knew now he had little hope of escape.

A creature broke off from the pack and ambled straight for Chester, its growls rising in volume as it drew closer. Chester took a hesitant step back but could see creatures emerging from the Pizza Hut behind him. He took stock and looked about, the gaps had closed up and there were several creatures moving to his position. Not long and that creature would pull him to the ground and rip his throat open like he had the Indian man in the store.

The creature loomed before him, a cold hand reaching for Chester' arm. A brief moment of hesitation followed before Chester swung out with the pizza box, connecting with the creature's head and sending both it and the box crashing to the ground. Already it was hissing and writhing, trying to get back to its feet amid the pizza sauce and melted cheese.

Aw pizza no, Chester groaned internally.

The creatures seemed filled with rage now that Chester had attacked, maybe they just enjoyed a meal that fought back or maybe they just sensed easy prey. Either way Chester knew this was likely the end. He crouched low, ready to charge into the crowd and risk his life for the chance of escape.

A sudden whine caused Chester and the creatures to pause, instantly a large green bus drove through the mass of creatures that had gathered in front of Chester. The doors for the bus sprang open and the rotund elderly driver gestured at Chester, who sprinted inside and heard the hiss as the doors closed behind him.

"You got the 3.50 adult fare?" The driver asked Chester, as he pulled away and drove through the large group of creatures.

"I...what?" Chester stammered, a hand already reaching to his pocket for his wallet.

"I'm just yanking your chain boyo," The driver chuckled, extending a hand in Chester' direction. “Name’s Gary. Though the boys on the other buses call me Gaz."

Chester reached forward and shook Gaz's hand, it was a strong and sweaty grip. Gaz was clad in the black and green of the bus driver uniform, the uniform itself was drenched in sweat much like Gaz's hands. The man had a heavy build with a large pot belly; he looked like he was strong though and not entirely unfit. Gaz also had a kind face that was lined with wrinkles that outlined his grin. Chester guessed the man would be in his late fifties, though he couldn't be sure.

"I'm Chester,"

"So where you heading Chester boy?" Gaz asked.

"I-I suppose I'm going to my family," Chester stammered.

"Can I get you to them?" Gaz looked up at Chester, a spark of determination in his eye.

"They're out of the city, the Rangiora area," Chester said with a grimace.

"Bit of a stretch lad," Gaz said, sighing and looking down at his dash. "The tank's already low, she wouldn't get us far enough. We might get lucky and hit the highway but I don't fancy walking that far on foot do you?"

"I could try," Chester murmured uncertainly.

"No," Gaz shook his head. "Look out there. You have those things, the creatures out there tearing people to shreds. Few minutes on your own in the pitch black and you'd be a goner. So would I. Your best hope is in here, the bus can plow through these things like nothing."

"Are you trying to get to your family?" Chester asked hesitantly.

"Not any time soon I hope," Gaz chuckled. "My folks been dead for a few years now. My wife...Angie liked the smokes; I did too back in the day. Twenty eight years I loved that woman, still in love with her."

"Do you have any kids?" Chester prompted.

"Kids...Ah well that there is a story," Gaz nodded, his vision clouding over for a moment. "Look Chester boy do me a favour and check up on the guy in the back for me will you? He was pretty shook up when he got in here and I haven't had a chance to talk to him since."

Chester glanced back and noticed that further into the bus, leaning against some seats was the cashier who had fled the Pizza Hut a few minutes before him. He looked distant, his eyes red and irritated as if he'd been crying. There was blood over his uniform and yet the cashier himself seemed uninjured. He looked to be playing with a chain that was about his neck but Chester couldn't see very clearly what it was.

"Yeah I'll go check on him," Chester said with a nod.

"Good, tell him we'll be at Northlands mall soon enough. Then we can evacuate with everyone else."

Chester turned and pulled himself past the seats and along the rails towards the young Indian man, lurching with every shudder of the bus as it rolled over more bodies. He wondered if what Gaz had said was true, if the bus really could manage to move through all these creatures. He could see that the bus was a large vehicle but it was being rocked violently the more bodies it hit. This could only go on for so long before the journey came to an end.

"Hey," Chester called to the cashier. "You okay?"

The cashier tucked the chain about his neck back under his shirt before meeting Chester' gaze. His eyes were set firm, a toughness that appeared unbreakable. Of course Chester could understand why, he'd seen his co-workers die but he'd lived. Alone, he had escaped certain death.

"My boyfriend," The man said slowly. "The man in the kitchen...is he…?"

Chester realised what was being asked and quickly shook his head, lowering his gaze. The young man clutched the back of the seat before him and hung like that, his teeth grinding together. Finally he let out an anguished cry, screwing up his eyes and looking at the ceiling.

"I'm sorry," Chester whispered.

"What is this curse?" The man moaned. "You lived! You saw him die?"

"Yes."

"You let him die?!" The man screamed, grabbing Chester by the shirt and slamming him into a window.

"Calm the hell down!" Gaz yelled from the driver's seat.

"I didn't let him die," Chester yelled, pushing the man's hands off of him. "He was already dead. One of those things had him on the counter, ripping his throat out. I couldn't help him when he was already dead."

"You didn't let him die..?"

"No," Chester said firmly. "He was dead. I saw it, couldn't stop it."

"I loved him," The cashier whispered, drained of his spirit.

Chester looked at the man helplessly, he had no idea what to say or how he could help. He took a seat near the cashier and gazed out to the middle distance. He thought back to the Pizza Hut, the kitchen hand gurgling blood on the counter. Could he have saved him? No, absolutely not. There was no reason to feel guilt for surviving but it was there nonetheless.

The bus took a sudden turn onto Harewood road and Gaz gave a hoot of joy at the thought of only being a couple of minutes from Northlands. He hadn't paid attention to the growing volume of abandoned cars, nor did he notice the motorbike in the middle of the road that wedged itself under the bus' chassis. It was only when the motorbike lurched the bus to a direct stop before a crowd of the creatures did Gaz curse the bus that had seemed so safe a moment ago.

As the bus screeched its halt, Chester was thrown off his feet and onto the floor. His head cracked against the hard plastic coating of the bus floor. Chester clutched his head and rolled, slowly pushing himself back onto his feet. Time seemed to have passed as the bus was shaking from the weight of bodies already pressing against the sides. Chester could see the cashier at the back of the bus, scrabbling to open the emergency exit to the roof. Meanwhile Gaz was at the front, holding the doors closed with all his weight and clutching a fire extinguisher in his hands. The rear exit doors were right in front of Chester, only a few creatures hovering by it.

"Chester boy!" Gaz yelled. "We can get out of this, we can! I'll keep them at bay if you open the rear doors on my mark. You up for that?"

"Don't listen to him," The cashier hissed. "We are goners if you attempt his fool plan. Here, help me wedge this thing open. We can get onto the roof and climb past these things!"

Chester sighed heavily, his head still clouded by the fall and the howls of the creatures. Every way he looked he seemed doomed, Gaz's idea was risky but the cashier's would only get them as far the roof, after that they'd be stuck on top of the bus still surrounded by these things. Still it seemed a lot safer than what Gaz had proposed.

There was another way, Chester mused as he looked up at the door in front of him again. He didn't have to wait for Gaz's signal to open it, in fact he could open it right now and make a break for it. There were very few creatures about the door, most had gravitated to the windows by the cashier or the front door where Gaz was. This could be Chester' chance.

But then, Chester mused, leaving now would be rude.

Chester grabbed the back of a chair and pulled himself to his feet, yet staying low to avoid detection by the creatures. He glanced up at the red button that was Gaz and his' escape plan, he could only hope it would work. A sudden thump as more bodies hit the front door made Chester start with fright, though he could see Gaz was still holding it together for now.

"You ready Chester boy?" Gaz called, straining to be heard over the bashing of bodies upon the door.

"Yeah I'm ready," Chester yelled back, steeling himself for the rush to come.

"You're both fucking insane," the cashier cried out, slamming his fists against the emergency exit but to no avail.

"Alright," Gaz said solemnly. "Let 'em loose."

Chester rushed and pushed the button to open the rear doors, grinning with satisfaction as they opened with a hiss. Gaz stepped back from his doors allowing them to burst inwards under the strain of the creatures. As the first one began to clamber on-board and towards Gaz, he aimed the fire extinguisher point blank at the mass. A fast onslaught of frothy foam flew out and struck the group of creatures, shunting them back briefly under the pressure. As the extinguisher began to run empty Gaz threw the extinguisher at the nearest creature and ran for the rear doors.

Chester and Gaz leapt out of the doors, thankful at the lack of creatures in this section. However a couple had already broken off and were heading towards them. Chester launched into a sprint, leading Gaz down Greers road and away from the threat of Harewood road. It was only when a loud scream pierced the night sky that Chester turned to look back.

Back at the bus the cashier had attempted to follow Chester and Gaz at the last second. He'd been pulled to the ground by a couple of creatures and in a few seconds was surrounded completely. Flesh had been torn apart like paper, and entrails consumed.

"You killed me too!" The cashier managed to shriek before his hysterics were cut off by a creature ripping out his throat.

Gaz had run a little further up the road to where a side street began, he waved Chester over. He jogged towards Gaz, thinking about what he'd just witnessed. He knew that the cashier's death wasn't his fault, but it was a terrible thing to hear yourself cursed as someone died. Even to witness as much carnage as he had this night was more than Chester could bear, what had happened to the world?

A cold grip about his leg tipped Chester' momentum and he suddenly found himself sprawled face down on the asphalt. There was loud shouting from Gaz in the distance but it was drowned out by the satisfied growling of one of the creatures. Chester could feel a cold hand gripping his ankle and the weight of something pulling itself towards him. He glanced back and saw a creature that had lost the lower half of its body. Entrails and coagulated blood ran in a trail behind it as it came ever closer to Chester.

Chester kicked the creature, and again, and again. It wouldn't relent, still it came ever closer. Its mouth opened to reveal black gums and rotted yellow teeth. Things seemed to slow as it loomed over Chester' leg, about to bite down. It was the claw of a hammer lodging itself in the back of the creature's head that freed Chester of the creature's grasp.

He looked up to see a figure drenched in coagulated blood and entrails, two smaller figures just behind them. The figure peered down at Chester and dislodged their hammer. It was all Chester could do to stare up in shock.

"It-it's you," Chester gasped.

Written by Ciaran Findlay

Edited by Nicole Campbell and Blair Findlay

The Night Shift - Chapter Six

Naomi

 Naomi closed the bathroom door behind her and squinted at the darkness of the hallway, flicking a lock of her brunette bob out of her eyes. She couldn't make out a damn thing until her eyes finally settled upon a glint of light coming from the open door of the lounge, the light itself coming from her room. She crept slowly down the hallway, trying to remain as silent as possible so as to not wake her flatmates.

Recently Naomi had found things confrontational and threatening at her flat, two things that she didn't take easily at all. Her flatmate Karina had been bullying her for weeks into moving out ever since Naomi had challenged her on a flat decision. It had gotten to the stage that Naomi was otherwise avoiding coming home or hiding out in her room, barely coming out. She knew that both her boyfriend Carson, and her brother, Jason, wanted to see her move out but she was determined to hold on for as long as she could. Even tonight she had only just walked through the door half an hour ago, still dressed in her leather jacket, jeans and boots.

Just as she reached the doorway to the lounge she heard a sound, like something being ripped and torn away. She turned to look through the doorway to the kitchen where two dark shapes were upon the floor. It wasn't until she got nearer the figures that she realised that a young woman was crouched over the body of a young man and eating the flesh from his exposed stomach..!?

Naomi bit her lip to stifle a gasp and slowly backed away; only to slip and fall under the slime of blood upon the floor. She landed with a heavy thud and a cry of pain causing the woman to spin about and hiss sharply. It was only now from a closer vantage point that Naomi finally realised who the two figures were. The young man was Isaak, her flatmate and a quiet friend who she hung out with a good couple of times. But the young woman was her flatmate Karina, a tall woman with flat dark brown hair and a piercing stare. However Karina had changed, her hair was torn and matted with blood while her skin had turned a pale grey.

Well, Naomi thought to herself, half in shock. At least she looks how she acts.

Karina growled and with a snarl lunged towards Naomi, who scrambled backwards and away. Spinning as she moved she pushed herself back onto her feet and charged into the lounge. A thud came from behind her, Karina must have slipped on the blood too. Her bedroom door was right before her and she threw it open and closed in one smooth sweep. She immediately threw any bits of furniture she could lift in front of her door. Mirror, chair, bookcase, TV; stop, breathe, think. She turned and ran to her chest of drawers, rummaging until she found the item she was looking for: a small switchblade knife. It was quite stiff from lack of use but it should be enough to defend herself if need be.

A sudden weighty slam against the door made her jump in shock. She turned to see that the door had already splintered around the hinges after the first hit; maybe she should have moved out after all. Another slam followed and Naomi raised the knife, her hand quivering. Karina was howling and snarling outside, completely feral and fuelled with bloodlust.

Naomi bit her lip nervously and glanced at the replica sword that had fallen upon the ground when she had thrown the bookcase against the door. It was kept in a dark blue wooden sheath with a matching dark blue hilt, the blade itself was silver iron with blunted edges. It was a direct replica of the Master Sword from the video game, Legend of Zelda, Naomi's favourite video game of all time. She picked up the sword and placed the knife in the pocket of her leather jacket.

The door shuddered again and gave way partially, allowing Karina to reach an arm through the door. Naomi backed away and glanced towards the end of her room where double doors led outside to the patio. She ran over to them and began unlocking the latches that barred her from opening it. A heavy thud made her wheel back to see her bedroom door give way under the weight of not only Karina, but the rest of her flatmates as well as several other strangers. She didn't even think to pull her weapons on them but rather flung the doors to the patio wide open and ran outside.

The world outside raged with a noise that she thought had been limited to her flat: snarls and cries that echoed all over the neighbourhood. Naomi ran to the end of her driveway and glanced in either direction, both ends of the street were brimming with these horrors. Already the nearest were turning to face her, growling with hunger. Naomi swung her sword back and lashed out at the nearest creature, dislocating its jaw but only barely slowing its advance. She paced back a few feet and looked about wildly, seeing the creatures from her flat lumber towards her from behind. Nowhere to run to now, Naomi grimaced.

As the crowd of creatures pressed in towards her Naomi finally made out a noise over the groaning, it sounded like a shriek. It took the sudden appearance of a white Ute hurtling around the far corner of the street and laying low a pack of five creatures for her to realise that the screeching was rubber on asphalt. The Ute continued up the street, ploughing a path right through the creatures. The closest creature to Naomi was blinded by intense headlights as it was caught by the momentum of the oncoming vehicle and dragged beneath the bonnet of the Ute.

The driver's door was forcibly opened by a muscular arm and Naomi's brother, Jason, leaned out of the driver's seat. He was wearing jeans, a t-shirt and unlaced shoes; Naomi assumed he must have only just gotten out of bed a few minutes ago. Jason's hair, beard and face dripped with water; it looked like he'd thrown a bucket upon himself to wake up fully. His dark blue eyes set in a grim stare, Naomi could only imagine what he had seen just in the short drive to her flat.

"You getting in?" Jason yelled over the din of the creatures.

Naomi swung out with her sword at a creature that had picked up momentum and was nearly in reach of her, a resounding thwack saw the creature tumbling to the side. Naomi didn't look to see if any others were near her, she made a run straight for the back door of the Ute. Swinging it open, she looked back at the tide of creatures thronging about her flat and towards her door. There were scores of them. This was insane.

Not waiting for his sister to close the door, Jason was already pulling away, his Ute buffering away any creature that found itself in front of the headlights. Naomi hurriedly closed her door and laid her sword down on the seat beside her. The Ute’s progress wasn't slow but it was rocky and the jarring movement made it hard to sit comfortably. Naomi leaned forward into the front seats, looking at her brother who had remained impassive since he'd rescued her.

"You gonna say something?" He finally asked, keeping his gaze on the road.

"Like what?" Naomi retorted.

"A thank you would be a good start."

"Seriously?" Naomi exclaimed.

Jason shot Naomi a glance and she realised that he wasn't playing around or trying to get on her nerves. This trip had come at some kind of cost for him, she could see that. It was at that point that Naomi finally realised Jason's girlfriend, Sam, wasn't in the Ute with them.

"I-thank you" Naomi said, falling back into her seat. She stared at the back of her brother's head, trying to find the words to ask him about Sam and what he knew. But there was nothing she could think to say, no gentle or easy way to break the moment of tension. She took to looking out the window and observed the horror as it unfolded.

As they drove past Riccarton road she saw a car that had crashed through a fence. There was a small group of creatures bunched around a body that was not far from the car, each creature shoving and fighting for a scrap of the bloody flesh. However there wasn't much left of the carcass, the creatures had clearly been picking over the body for several minutes.

"Sam's okay,"

Naomi looked up to see Jason looking at her through the rear view mirror. She grinned at him and he smiled despite himself.

"Well thank fuck for that," Naomi said, feeling the tension ease away. "You had me freaked for a second there."

"Well she's still at the house getting supplies together," Jason replied. "But who knows how long until my area gets overrun as bad as yours was."

"We have time."

"Yeah," Jason nodded. "You heard from Carson?"

"I haven't even checked my phone," Naomi gasped, scrambling to get her phone out of her back pocket.

Naomi turned her phone on and looked at the one message that had been left. It was from Sasha, the manager of the cinema complex Naomi worked at. She was urging everyone to get to Hoyts in a chain text it looked like. But Naomi wasn't so sure this was the best thing for her and her brother, even if they were evacuating there. They needed to stay together and they hadn't even gotten to Sam or Carson yet.

"Anything?" Jason called back.

"Nothing from Carson," Naomi replied distantly, her thoughts turning to her boyfriend. He practically lived on the opposite side of the city, he could very well be dead already. Or maybe he'd gotten Sasha's text and was being evacuated with his family already. But Naomi knew that she would tear the city apart to find him if she had to.

"He's alive," Jason said with confidence.

"How do you know?"

"Because you're not giving up, not on him, not on yourself. I think we're going to fight our way to get him but we'll get there."

"What's going on, Jason? What's happening out there?" Naomi said, quickly changing the subject.

"They're saying it's a virus, bunch of infected people that die of their illness and get brought back as flesh eaters. They're just mindless husks that go around and eat the living. It's fucking brutal."

"How are we going to get out of here?" Naomi asked. "No way is the city safe anymore."

"Yeah fuck that," Jason said in agreement. "They're talking about these evac points but I don't think they'll hold, not even the cordon they're building up at the city centre can last for long."

"So what then?"

"We get the hell out of town. Grab Sam, then Carson and his family and we just drive north. Find somewhere isolated out in the wilderness and wait this thing out for a few weeks. Hell you can show us all your hunting skills and set some snares, y'know the ones you looked up on YouTube?"

Naomi leaned forward and hit her brother on the shoulder, who burst into hysterics. She had to admit though, it wasn't a bad plan and they could pull it off. Jason's Ute was sturdy and strong, they'd push their way out no trouble. Once they got into the wilderness they only had to be there for as long as it took for the military to wipe out the flesh eaters.

Naomi's attention was diverted by a sudden view that came into sight. Down the road, a large group of the flesh eaters had begun congregating on the corner of the street that Jason lived upon. There were so many that they had all begun pushing into homes rather than amble about on the street. Jason's house was only two in from the corner and Naomi couldn't even make it out amongst the crowd.

"Jason..." Naomi whispered.

"She's not dead." Jason replied through clenched teeth.

"You can't do this, we'll die."

"No one's fucking dying!" Jason yelled, slamming his foot down on the accelerator.

The Ute surged forward, carving a fresh path anew, bodies falling as quickly as they appeared. Jason began swerving to create a wider gap of space that took time for the flesh eaters to fill up. As he approached the driveway of the house Jason spun the wheel so that the Ute blocked the entrance into the house while still facing the street for a quick getaway.

Jason grabbed a long wrench from the storage compartment of his door. Without turning to look at his sister Jason leapt from the Ute, running through the open gate of his home and into the group of flesh eaters that ambled outside the front door of his house. He swung outwards constantly, landing blow after blow and caving in the heads of many of the beasts. In his rush to push through the swarm he noticed that the ones who he had caused severe trauma to the head were the ones that were not immediately returning to the fight. A frantic flesh eater lunged from the ground upwards at him and he quickly retaliated by bringing his wrench down upon the creature's head, burying his weapon deep. Running forward he swiftly dispatched the two remaining flesh eaters that barred his entrance and climbed through the remains of his broken front door.

Naomi pushed her door open and gripped her sword tightly before following Jason's path. She paused to count the flesh eaters he had killed as she ran past them, it looked to be a group of about seven. She shivered at the sight of such gore before her and looked at the front door. She wondered if that's what she would become if ever she was faced with Carson's life in the balance. She hoped she would never have to find out.

Stepping into the dimly lit house she could make out very little except for the sound of screeching and shouting. Turning a corner in the hallway Naomi found two flesh eater corpses and her brother pressed against the wall by another. The flesh eater was manic, clattering its teeth right in Jason's face. But he roared back, matching one feral response for another.

As he wrestled with the flesh eater, Jason saw Naomi out of the corner of his eye and indicated his bedroom door with a nod of his head. Naomi looked at the open doorway and saw a huddled shape within, she raised her sword and cautiously walked inside. As she drew near the figure she readied her sword, not sure what to expect.

Yet as she drew nearer she quickly lowered her sword and ran to the figure. It was Sam, she was alive! But she could already tell that something was wrong, her head was lolling forward and her brown hair stuck to the sweat that coated her brow. Sam couldn't sit up straight and just lay slumped awkwardly against the wall, her eyes barely registering the movement around her. Naomi reached forward and brushed the hair out of Sam's face but recoiled as quickly as she had started.

Upon Sam's shoulder, close to her neck, was a large torn patch of ragged skin. Marks along the skin where the wound was indicated an incision made by a bite. Sam must have been bitten by one of the flesh eaters and whatever effect the bite was having was bad. Blood soaked Sam's shoulder and her top, but it seemed to have begun to dry, Naomi could see articles of clothing on the floor which Sam had used to slow the bleeding. Naomi could only hope it was enough.

Picking up a jacket that Sam hadn't already used to stop the bleeding, she wrapped it about the bite on Sam's arm and tightened it. Satisfied with her temporary tourniquet, Naomi crouched under Sam's arm and pushed upwards, using the wall to aid her failing strength. Finally she had Sam's weight upon her and was able to slowly ease her forward.

"Naomi...?" Sam gurgled, recognition briefly illuminating her eyes.

"Keep moving Sam, I'll get you somewhere safe," Naomi reassured gently.

As the women stepped out into the corridor a loud roar brought Naomi's attention to Jason who moved past them, lifting his previous assailant upwards. With a weighty slam he brought the flesh eater down upon the ground hard and finished it off by smashing his wrench into the creature's face over and over again. As he began to wind down from his frenzy Jason's breathing slowed and he finally looked at Naomi with some semblance of calm.

"She okay?" Jason panted, easing himself back onto his feet.

"She got bitten by one of those things," Naomi said, speaking softly. "She managed to halt the bleeding as much as she could and I've halted any further bleeding for now but she isn't in good shape. She needs medical attention, Jason."

"That's not happening," Jason growled. "You know we can't go to one of the evac points."

"She could die! Does that not matter to you at all?!" Naomi cried in frustration.

"She won't!" Jason yelled, smashing his fist through the wall. "None of you are dying okay? This is not fucking over. She's just lost blood."

Jason stepped forward and scooped Sam up into his arms, carrying her outside. Naomi stared after her brother, concerned that he had lost himself to bad judgement already. But she knew that she couldn't question him now, not when they were still in such danger and had a lot of ground to cover. She ran quickly to catch up to Jason, just in time to see him stow Sam in the passenger seat of the Ute. Already flesh eaters were shaking the vehicle and scrabbling to get at Jason, Naomi or Sam.

"You getting in?" Jason called over his shoulder as he slid into the driver's seat and keyed the ignition.

Naomi felt it then, the change in her brother. Something had made him go cold, she realised it was the death he'd dealt so swiftly. He'd brutally killed those things by the numbers, maybe it was to save someone and maybe they weren't human anymore but it had still hit him hard. As she settled into the back seat and closed the door behind her Naomi looked out at the seven bodies Jason had left outside only a few minutes ago. The number was small but it had been enough.

The Ute pulled away and the flesh eaters parted again, allowing their small group to make for safe haven once again. Sam groaned and shivered in her seat, curling into a ball. Jason glanced at her from time to time, worry etched upon his face. Naomi leaned forward and eased the jacket off to inspect the wound. It had already changed significantly; the skin about the bite having taken upon a grey colour and the bite itself a dark green.

"Stop the car Jason," Naomi whispered.

Jason ignored her, staring ahead and glaring a little. He was not ready to hear what she was saying, he was determined to see his plan through.

"She's not okay Jason! You have to stop, now!"

"Stop yelling Naomi," Jason retorted bitterly." Just-just can we listen to something for a bit? I just need something to drown this all out."

Without waiting for a response Jason leaned forward and turned the radio on. He was met with a burst of static that hissed through the speakers. Cursing, Jason began flipping through the frequencies until a strong yet shaky voice leapt out at them.

“-a reminder to the public we advise you to stay away from all infected individuals if possible. If you are bitten or scratched by an Infected you need to isolate yourself from others, and if you arrive at the Cordon or any military checkpoints then it is crucial you make your injuries known, that way you can be treated- " 

Jason switched the radio off in one swift, aggressive movement and continued staring out the windscreen. Naomi knew that he was thinking the same thing that she was- Sam wasn't going to be alright without medical treatment. She was infected, this likely meant that in time she'd become a flesh eater. They couldn't take her out of the city that much was for sure.

"Jason," Naomi said firmly. "I swear to god you pull over now and listen to me."

Naomi was sent tumbling to the side as Jason lurched into a quiet side street that seemed devoid of flesh eaters for the moment. He pulled over and threw his door open, crossing in front of the car to Sam's door. He opened it and with one quick movement bundled Sam up and moved her behind the Ute onto the street. Naomi rushed out of the Ute after him, watching with horror at his abrupt change in behaviour.

"You want to do something about this so badly," Jason shouted, turning to face her with tears in his eyes. "Then you make the damn choice. I-I can't."

Jason's shoulders sagged and he walked slowly past Naomi, easing himself back into the driver's seat and closing the door behind himself. Naomi looked at him, trying to pull himself back together but visibly failing. She then turned to look at Sam lying upon the ground, her breath rasping. Slowly Naomi walked towards her, feeling the weight of the knife in her pocket the closer she got.

Naomi slowly withdrew the switchblade from her pocket and flicked the knife open. She looked down at Sam, who was sucking at the air hungrily, practically clinging to life. Naomi slowly unwound the jacket from the bite wound and pulled away at the sight of how badly Sam's condition had really gotten. Veins on Sam's neck stood out against her flesh and the wound had begun to stink like expired meat; all of her flesh had dulled to that same grey colour.

"You know this isn't what I want, right?" Naomi asked, crouching to look down at Sam. "But if you stay with us, we could never save you. I wanted you to live so badly, Sam."

Naomi choked back a sob and looked quickly at the ground, breathing heavily and gathering her thoughts. Her grip tightened on her knife and she laid a hand on Sam's uninfected shoulder. She looked just above Sam's head and raised her knife to Sam's eye. She quivered for a second and felt something cold brush against her fingers. She looked down to see Sam lightly trying to hit away Naomi's knife but lacking the strength to do so. Naomi bit her lip, shaking her head as she plunged her knife deeply into Sam's eyes. Sam shuddered once and then moved no more, her struggling hand falling to the ground.

Naomi fell back to the ground, beating the asphalt with her fists and clapping a hand to her mouth to stifle in cries she was so sure would come. There was nothing left now out here, nothing at all. She had to focus again, but she was lost in what she'd just done. The howl of a flesh eater ambling onto the street aligned her back to a stable state of mind.

Pulling her knife out of Sam's skull and wiping it on the discarded jacket, Naomi ran back to the Ute. She refused to look back at Sam, couldn't begin to bear it. She slid into the back seat and Jason pulled the Ute away from the curb without a word. There was nothing to be said but Naomi knew he had seen everything and she was sure she had lost her brother already.

"I don't want you to apologise for this," Jason croaked, his voice hoarse. "I forgive you. There was nothing else in the world that you could do. You were…you made the right choice. She got to die who she was."

Naomi nodded, wanting to break down right then and there. Wanting to hug her brother, to apologise, to throw herself out of the car. There was no winding back time, Sam was dead and she was forgiven. She got to live, she got more time.

"The plan doesn't change," Jason said, looking at her through the rear-view mirror. "We find Carson and his family and we get the hell out of this city."

Naomi nodded. But she knew that the plan had changed, it couldn't be salvaged. Not even by Jason.

Written by Ciaran Findlay

Edited by Nicole Campbell and Blair Findlay